Jonathan Comey: Get ready for Garoppolo-mania

Five things we learned from the Patriots' 23-6 road "loss" to the Washington Redskins Thursday night, in a game that was highly forgettable ... until the Pats' third-string quarterback came into the game.

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By JONATHAN COMEY

southcoasttoday.com

By JONATHAN COMEY

Posted Aug. 8, 2014 at 12:01 AM
Updated Aug 8, 2014 at 2:23 PM

By JONATHAN COMEY

Posted Aug. 8, 2014 at 12:01 AM
Updated Aug 8, 2014 at 2:23 PM

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Five things we learned from the Patriots' 23-6 road "loss" to the Washington Redskins Thursday night, in a game that was highly forgettable "» until the Pats' third-string quarterback came into the game.

1. Jimmy Garoppolo did more in one half than Ryan Mallett has in three-plus seasons.

You can debate whether the Patriots needed to draft a quarterback in the second round, but after Thursday night there's not going to be much debate about the quality of the talent.

Garoppolo (9 of 13, 157 yards) just passed the eye test in every way — agile, quick release, strong arm, mobile. He leapt off the screen — reminds you a bit of Tony Romo, who also went to Eastern Illinois, and also had some pretty obvious skills from the get-go.

Reports from training camp were mostly that he looked tentative, but he didn't show a second's hesitation Thursday night during his play in the second half. When he entered the game, the offense instantly took on a different dimension, and the entire unit seemed to be playing with a new level of excitement.

The speed of his decision-making was very encouraging, and he looks much more like a guy that can play a similar game to Brady than Mallett does. His deep ball to speedy Brian Tyms early in the fourth quarter was a rocket strike that hit the spot perfectly.

We've fallen in love with backups before (see Bishop, Michael), but Jimmymania has officially begun.

2. Mallett just doesn't seem to have it. But we knew that already.

Mallett-bashing is a pretty common occurrence in August, and for good reason. While his demeanor has improved from his rookie season, his play has not — he looks awkward, misses throws and just brings no excitement to the field. Every game looks like his first game.

His passer rating over the 2011 preseason was 72.0. In 2012, it was 70.5. In 2013, it was 80.3. On Thursday night (5 for 12, 55 yards), it was 55.9. That's just not going to cut it.

And coordinator Josh McDaniels didn't help matters much. On back-to-back 3rd-and-longs in the first quarter, he didn't even ask Mallett to try and make something happen; they just went with safe plays — a draw, then a screen — and the Patriots meekly punted it away. No one wants to get a QB injured in the preseason, but what's the point of keeping the kid gloves on a guy the Patriots could conceivably need this year?

It was a good example of why the Patriots picked Garoppolo. And why a reporter asked him if he thought his time in New England was running out. Mallett's answer? "No."

3. it's good to see some familiar sights.

Yes, we were collectively ready for some football — even if it wasn't very good football, by any measure. As steady Steve Burton noted on the TV broadcast, Thursday night's game was exactly 200 days after the Patriots limped off the field in Denver. That's a lot of days to go without football.

And so it was good to see Bill Belichick, on the sideline, sleeves cut off, taking notes in that little pad he carries around. Good to see defensive coordinator Matt Patricia's burly beard, special teams coordinator Scott O'Brien's massive mustache.

Good to see a bunch of guys in Patriots uniforms hustling and hitting, even if many of them will make little impact on the 2014 season.

Good to see Vince Wilfork, big belly extending out under his familiar No. 75, hopefully ready to return to form.

But more than anything it was good to remember that that no matter how they play in August, the Patriots have the team to find familiar success in September.

4. The game served as a grim reminder of just how thin the Patriots' defense was the last time we saw them.

Patriots fans probably had a few unpleasant flashbacks of the AFC title game watching the Redskins' offense move the ball at will in the first half. But the Patriots were playing without most of their projected starters — only Wilfork, Tommy Kelly and Brandon Browner were first-liners.

Bill Belichick wisely sat stars Darrelle Revis, Devin McCourty and his entire starting linebacking crew, needing to take a look at the deep group of competitors for roster spots. The rest of the players who saw the field for the first three quarters are guys who'll make the team, most likely, but are best used in small doses — much like the guys we watched struggle mightily in that 26-16 loss in Denver.

By the end of that game, Chris Jones, Sealver Siliga, Kyle Arrington, Alfonzo Dennard and Steve Gregory were playing every snap, and the results weren't good — the only surprise was that New England only lost the game by 10. Would've been nice to see them go in there with Jerod Mayo, Wilfork, Revis, etc.

All of the talk this offseason has been about the defense, and when the key guys do get out there in the real action, chances are they're going to be real good. But for one night, at least, nothing had changed.

5. And we also learned...

Belichick showed his experience advantage over Washington's rookie head coach Jay Gruden, wisely avoiding the hideous NFL-issue horizontal striped team shirts that Gruden and most of the assistants wore.

Kick returner Roy FInch showed his spark on a long return in the first half, and his inexperience when he fumbled. A favorite of Belichick and the fans, he got a reprieve because the Redskins were offsides on the kick. He held on to the second one.

It's pretty much impossible to assess an offensive lineman live, but it was good to see fourth-round pick Bryan Stork get on the field. Looks like a player to me.

Chris Jones went down hurt toward the end of the half after playing defensive end for most of his snaps; that makes a lot more sense than defensive tackle, where he made impact plays but was lost against the run.